Children are considered as future of a country. If their present is bright and healthy, the future of the country would also dazzle. In the process of development, the child goes through many stages. As an infant, he receives love and care of his family members. After few years when he starts going to school he receives guidance from teachers. Everybody whether a relative, neighbor, friend or guardian wants to give love and affection to the child but intentionally or unintentionally they may upset the child through some unwanted action of theirs. Parents, teachers and well-wishers should listen to the problems of children and try to solve them. All parents want to fulfill the basic needs of their children like food, shelter, clothing and they make every effort to meet their requirements. But all their demands cannot be fulfilled due to obvious reasons like financial or moral constraints. Most of the times parents or guardians hurt the kids due to their own problems like if a parent is involved in his personal problem, he will loose his temper over a minor mistake made by the child. Parents may develop a bad temperament due to multifarious reasons like scolding by boss, argument with spouse or influence of liquor or intake of drugs or any other similar reason. But the brunt of this bad temperament is ultimately borne by the child. The parents expect their child to think and act beyond his age. Actually, in many cases, parents themselves are guilty of making their children undisciplined. In a fit of anger parents immediately slap or hit the child impulsively. No food or water is given to the child for number of hours. In acute cases physical punishment given by the parents or guardians may also result in bodily injuries to the child. There are number of examples in the society when children are sexually abused at their own homes by their guardians. Sometimes neglect of the children is necessitated by the dire needs of the family. In many cases due to financial constraints, mothers of very young children have to work at odd hours to fulfill the very basic needs of the family. Most of the parents and guardians do not deliberately neglect a child. Some unfortunate parents have to neglect the child due to unavoidable circumstances. Sometimes a guardian neglects a child because he also did not get attention of anyone when he himself was a child. He gets a satisfaction by doing so. In some cases the neglected child came into the world when he was not wanted means he is not a planned baby. Some parents or guardians are not aware of the ways to correct a child without giving him physical punishment. Sometimes child beating is a result of the frustration of the parents. There are many other ways to improve a child other than corporeal punishment. If a child misbehaves parents should not also behave in the same way for example shouting at them or hitting them. They should try to remain cool and tell about the bad effects of the misconduct to the child. They should avoid scolding the children in front of others. This demoralizes the child and he becomes a rebel. Never shout at the child at once. Give him some moments to calm down and then ask about his difficulties. Whenever a child conducts himself very well, parents should give a pat at the back. First parents and guardians should learn the ways to manage their frustration on their own. All the people in the society must be alert and vigilant and wherever and whenever they see the signs of child abuse must report to the designated authority. If cuts are seen on the body of the child or signs of burns are found. If the child looks malnourished, dirty, lack of involvement, does not show any interest playing with other children; all are symptoms of child abuse. These ill-treated children live under the shadow of fear and agony. Child-neglect has dreadful effects on the children and they may even die due to the sheer neglect by the parents or guardians. They face various kinds of physical and psychological problems, like, decrement of learning ability, aggressive or violent behavior and shy nature. The ill effects of the abuse or neglect last for much longer period than anticipated. They may have lack of emotional bonds with their families, or they may resort to drugs or alcohol at the later stage. People hesitate to report the matter to social agencies as they intend to remain away from the others' family matters. People should understand that reporting such a case is in the best interest of the unfortunate child. The doctor can assist the parents and the guardian well in this concern. Social agencies also conduct classes for enabling the parents to look after the child well. Community centers, counselors, Religious groups etc. are also doing their best efforts to eradicate this problem. Hotline numbers are available to report to social agencies responsible for protection of the children. On getting the report regarding child-abuse these agencies take the steps according to the requirement. Child Abuse or neglect greatly hampers the overall growth of the child. As children are the future of any country, every necessary step should be taken to ensure their development in all spheres of the life. http://www.nrilegalservices.com |
